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(11-14-2018 10:57 AM)dubcat14 Wrote:  Justin Williams of The Athletic sat down and had a long in-depth interview with LF. In absolute fairness to Justin, I won't post the whole interview though it's a very good read, but the last question relates to his future. Take it how you will as we've had coaches in the past who've said they like it here but he seems more genuine. The biggest take is the last line mentioning his family "My wife and I have had a plan for a while, and it’s not picking up and moving six kids, and that’s the honest truth."

I personally believe the next realignment will happen when the B12 TV contract comes due (in 2025??) and I just hope he can keep us relevant until then.

Justin Williams: I’m sure you hate this question, but your name is already popping up in coaching rumors for open jobs. Fans of this program are so conditioned whenever a coach has success to start wondering when the team is going to lose him. I don’t expect you to make any guarantees or even pay attention to that stuff, but what are your thoughts and feelings about you and the future of this program?

Luke Fickell: I don’t think about anything else, to be honest with you. Last year I was more worried about fans wondering [negatively], "Holy cow, how long are we going to have this guy for?" So I think there is an ebb and flow and a rollercoaster. I think (the success) is great for our program. But we sat down and talked about it for recruiting — that’s the first time I heard anything about those rumors. One of our recruiting guys came in and said there are some words out there mentioning my name. I didn’t even turn on the TV last week. But I wanted to make sure, are there any recruits that we’re worried about, that I need to talk to or address? Guys maybe similar to this past year with Josh Whyle or Malik Vann, local kids — let’s make sure. Let me get on the phone and talk to them, just to make sure they’re straight. Other than that, I don’t address it, I don’t talk about it, I don’t worry about it. My wife and I have had a plan for a while, and it’s not picking up and moving six kids, and that’s the honest truth.

My source says LF has a 10 year plan to stay in Cincy based on his wife's input about the young kids. I hope it is true.

(11-14-2018 07:44 PM)doss2 Wrote:  

(11-14-2018 10:57 AM)dubcat14 Wrote:  Justin Williams of The Athletic sat down and had a long in-depth interview with LF. In absolute fairness to Justin, I won't post the whole interview though it's a very good read, but the last question relates to his future. Take it how you will as we've had coaches in the past who've said they like it here but he seems more genuine. The biggest take is the last line mentioning his family "My wife and I have had a plan for a while, and it’s not picking up and moving six kids, and that’s the honest truth."

I personally believe the next realignment will happen when the B12 TV contract comes due (in 2025??) and I just hope he can keep us relevant until then.

Justin Williams: I’m sure you hate this question, but your name is already popping up in coaching rumors for open jobs. Fans of this program are so conditioned whenever a coach has success to start wondering when the team is going to lose him. I don’t expect you to make any guarantees or even pay attention to that stuff, but what are your thoughts and feelings about you and the future of this program?

Luke Fickell: I don’t think about anything else, to be honest with you. Last year I was more worried about fans wondering [negatively], "Holy cow, how long are we going to have this guy for?" So I think there is an ebb and flow and a rollercoaster. I think (the success) is great for our program. But we sat down and talked about it for recruiting — that’s the first time I heard anything about those rumors. One of our recruiting guys came in and said there are some words out there mentioning my name. I didn’t even turn on the TV last week. But I wanted to make sure, are there any recruits that we’re worried about, that I need to talk to or address? Guys maybe similar to this past year with Josh Whyle or Malik Vann, local kids — let’s make sure. Let me get on the phone and talk to them, just to make sure they’re straight. Other than that, I don’t address it, I don’t talk about it, I don’t worry about it. My wife and I have had a plan for a while, and it’s not picking up and moving six kids, and that’s the honest truth.

My source says LF has a 10 year plan to stay in Cincy based on his wife's input about the young kids. I hope it is true.

are you being serious or is this a tongue-in-cheek/inside joke reference

(11-14-2018 08:20 PM)Bearcats#1 Wrote:  

(11-14-2018 07:44 PM)doss2 Wrote:  

(11-14-2018 10:57 AM)dubcat14 Wrote:  Justin Williams of The Athletic sat down and had a long in-depth interview with LF. In absolute fairness to Justin, I won't post the whole interview though it's a very good read, but the last question relates to his future. Take it how you will as we've had coaches in the past who've said they like it here but he seems more genuine. The biggest take is the last line mentioning his family "My wife and I have had a plan for a while, and it’s not picking up and moving six kids, and that’s the honest truth."

I personally believe the next realignment will happen when the B12 TV contract comes due (in 2025??) and I just hope he can keep us relevant until then.

Justin Williams: I’m sure you hate this question, but your name is already popping up in coaching rumors for open jobs. Fans of this program are so conditioned whenever a coach has success to start wondering when the team is going to lose him. I don’t expect you to make any guarantees or even pay attention to that stuff, but what are your thoughts and feelings about you and the future of this program?

Luke Fickell: I don’t think about anything else, to be honest with you. Last year I was more worried about fans wondering [negatively], "Holy cow, how long are we going to have this guy for?" So I think there is an ebb and flow and a rollercoaster. I think (the success) is great for our program. But we sat down and talked about it for recruiting — that’s the first time I heard anything about those rumors. One of our recruiting guys came in and said there are some words out there mentioning my name. I didn’t even turn on the TV last week. But I wanted to make sure, are there any recruits that we’re worried about, that I need to talk to or address? Guys maybe similar to this past year with Josh Whyle or Malik Vann, local kids — let’s make sure. Let me get on the phone and talk to them, just to make sure they’re straight. Other than that, I don’t address it, I don’t talk about it, I don’t worry about it. My wife and I have had a plan for a while, and it’s not picking up and moving six kids, and that’s the honest truth.

My source says LF has a 10 year plan to stay in Cincy based on his wife's input about the young kids. I hope it is true.

are you being serious or is this a tongue-in-cheek/inside joke reference

I've seen references to Luke Fickell having a 10 year plan elsewhere, starting soon after he was hired. I would say he is serious.

(11-14-2018 08:38 PM)TubaCat Wrote:  

(11-14-2018 08:20 PM)Bearcats#1 Wrote:  

(11-14-2018 07:44 PM)doss2 Wrote:  

(11-14-2018 10:57 AM)dubcat14 Wrote:  Justin Williams of The Athletic sat down and had a long in-depth interview with LF. In absolute fairness to Justin, I won't post the whole interview though it's a very good read, but the last question relates to his future. Take it how you will as we've had coaches in the past who've said they like it here but he seems more genuine. The biggest take is the last line mentioning his family "My wife and I have had a plan for a while, and it’s not picking up and moving six kids, and that’s the honest truth."

I personally believe the next realignment will happen when the B12 TV contract comes due (in 2025??) and I just hope he can keep us relevant until then.

Justin Williams: I’m sure you hate this question, but your name is already popping up in coaching rumors for open jobs. Fans of this program are so conditioned whenever a coach has success to start wondering when the team is going to lose him. I don’t expect you to make any guarantees or even pay attention to that stuff, but what are your thoughts and feelings about you and the future of this program?

Luke Fickell: I don’t think about anything else, to be honest with you. Last year I was more worried about fans wondering [negatively], "Holy cow, how long are we going to have this guy for?" So I think there is an ebb and flow and a rollercoaster. I think (the success) is great for our program. But we sat down and talked about it for recruiting — that’s the first time I heard anything about those rumors. One of our recruiting guys came in and said there are some words out there mentioning my name. I didn’t even turn on the TV last week. But I wanted to make sure, are there any recruits that we’re worried about, that I need to talk to or address? Guys maybe similar to this past year with Josh Whyle or Malik Vann, local kids — let’s make sure. Let me get on the phone and talk to them, just to make sure they’re straight. Other than that, I don’t address it, I don’t talk about it, I don’t worry about it. My wife and I have had a plan for a while, and it’s not picking up and moving six kids, and that’s the honest truth.

My source says LF has a 10 year plan to stay in Cincy based on his wife's input about the young kids. I hope it is true.

are you being serious or is this a tongue-in-cheek/inside joke reference

I've seen references to Luke Fickell having a 10 year plan elsewhere, starting soon after he was hired. I would say he is serious.

Yeah, back when he was hired he talked quite a bit to the effect of not wanting to be a guy jumping from job to job and how UC was a place he could put down some family roots. He didn't say "never" and obviously no coach is going to announce he took any job as a stepping stone. But I do think he was/is much likelier to have a smaller scope and longer timeline for jobs he'd strongly consider leaving for than most coaches. It was one of the more appealing things about hiring him imo. Of course, Tubs brought some of that same stability (had he actually won) as well but for different reasons.

I expect him to be in demand, but I'm honestly not that worried about him jumping ship any time soon unless OSU or ND opened up. I'm much more worried about staff turnover, especially Freeman. If the D continues strong down the stretch, I would imagine multiple Big 10 DC jobs could be his for the taking, maybe even a MAC HC job. I'm not sure we could compete with that financially (in terms of the former) or as a career opportunity (in terms of the latter). But nice raises for our staff certainly wouldn't hurt our case for staying.

Freeman is going to get offers he can’t refuse. That’s the price of success.

(11-15-2018 06:17 AM)Dannyboy Wrote:  Freeman is going to get offers he can’t refuse. That’s the price of success.

I think Freeman's next step is a head coach, which I think he is another year away from getting serious looks if the defense continues to roll.

I wish we could get assistant coach salaries significantly up. I don't mind losing assistant coaches if they are going on to be head coaches at lessor programs. Its losing assistant coaches to bigger programs where they are going to do the same job for more money. I know it happens, but it doesn't happen near as much to P5's because of their tv money revenue stream, they pay their assistant coaches a lot more and that helps with stability, continuity, perception, etc. More than giving CLF a raise, I'd like to see our assistant coaches pool increase. I believe there are one or two AAC schools who have a higher pool of money for their assistant coaches and I'd like to see UC move at least to the top of the G5 for this.

Keep in mind Freeman was part of the fired Purdue staff and was Fickels first coach to commit. I think he understands that being the hot assistant on an up and coming staff is more valuable long term than chasing dollars. If he's got a connection to someone similar to his relationship with Luke and they're looking at a defensive coordinator I could see that but I doubt he'd just go chasing dollars.

Never underestimate the power of dollars.

(11-15-2018 11:39 AM)Bruce Monnin Wrote:  Never underestimate the power of dollars.

Just as in a business, with any employee there are so many factors it's just impossible to predict. We won't fault Freeman if he takes crazy money to go. But if he feels fairly compensated and is enjoying the ride here personally and professionally, he may stick around a little longer.

(11-15-2018 11:39 AM)Bruce Monnin Wrote:  Never underestimate the power of dollars.

While I tend to lean to your side...I just don't know if there's an amount of money that could justify uprooting 6 children every 2-4 years, especially in their developing age. That is a quick way to get your children to resent you or at the very least make life WAY harder.

(11-15-2018 12:29 PM)BearcatMan Wrote:  

(11-15-2018 11:39 AM)Bruce Monnin Wrote:  Never underestimate the power of dollars.

While I tend to lean to your side...I just don't know if there's an amount of money that could justify uprooting 6 children every 2-4 years, especially in their developing age. That is a quick way to get your children to resent you or at the very least make life WAY harder.

In its early years, my career involved relatively frequent moves, from Arizona to Mississippi to North Dakota, then South Dakota, and finally Colorado. Most were when the kids were younger, and we'd pretty much settled down when they became of high school age. Frankly, I think they enjoyed the adventure when they were younger and the stability when they were older. None, so as far as I know, resents us or the experience (they're all in the 40s and 50s now, with multiple degrees, families of their own, and fulfilling careers). Of course, I was a national park ranger, and we got paid to live year 'round in some rather spectacular settings that most people, if they're lucky, might spend a few days or a week in, so there were compensations. There's something special about having the Grand Canyon in your back yard. That said, I don't know anyone who chose my career path to get rich. It was much more a way of life than a way to make a living.

(11-14-2018 08:20 PM)Bearcats#1 Wrote:  

(11-14-2018 07:44 PM)doss2 Wrote:  

(11-14-2018 10:57 AM)dubcat14 Wrote:  Justin Williams of The Athletic sat down and had a long in-depth interview with LF. In absolute fairness to Justin, I won't post the whole interview though it's a very good read, but the last question relates to his future. Take it how you will as we've had coaches in the past who've said they like it here but he seems more genuine. The biggest take is the last line mentioning his family "My wife and I have had a plan for a while, and it’s not picking up and moving six kids, and that’s the honest truth."

I personally believe the next realignment will happen when the B12 TV contract comes due (in 2025??) and I just hope he can keep us relevant until then.

Justin Williams: I’m sure you hate this question, but your name is already popping up in coaching rumors for open jobs. Fans of this program are so conditioned whenever a coach has success to start wondering when the team is going to lose him. I don’t expect you to make any guarantees or even pay attention to that stuff, but what are your thoughts and feelings about you and the future of this program?

Luke Fickell: I don’t think about anything else, to be honest with you. Last year I was more worried about fans wondering [negatively], "Holy cow, how long are we going to have this guy for?" So I think there is an ebb and flow and a rollercoaster. I think (the success) is great for our program. But we sat down and talked about it for recruiting — that’s the first time I heard anything about those rumors. One of our recruiting guys came in and said there are some words out there mentioning my name. I didn’t even turn on the TV last week. But I wanted to make sure, are there any recruits that we’re worried about, that I need to talk to or address? Guys maybe similar to this past year with Josh Whyle or Malik Vann, local kids — let’s make sure. Let me get on the phone and talk to them, just to make sure they’re straight. Other than that, I don’t address it, I don’t talk about it, I don’t worry about it. My wife and I have had a plan for a while, and it’s not picking up and moving six kids, and that’s the honest truth.

My source says LF has a 10 year plan to stay in Cincy based on his wife's input about the young kids. I hope it is true.

are you being serious or is this a tongue-in-cheek/inside joke reference

My source is the father in law of an OSU Assoc. AD so I am serious.

(11-15-2018 12:51 PM)colohank Wrote:  

(11-15-2018 12:29 PM)BearcatMan Wrote:  

(11-15-2018 11:39 AM)Bruce Monnin Wrote:  Never underestimate the power of dollars.

While I tend to lean to your side...I just don't know if there's an amount of money that could justify uprooting 6 children every 2-4 years, especially in their developing age. That is a quick way to get your children to resent you or at the very least make life WAY harder.

In its early years, my career involved relatively frequent moves, from Arizona to Mississippi to North Dakota, then South Dakota, and finally Colorado. Most were when the kids were younger, and we'd pretty much settled down when they became of high school age. Frankly, I think they enjoyed the adventure when they were younger and the stability when they were older. None, so as far as I know, resents us or the experience (they're all in the 40s and 50s now, with multiple degrees, families of their own, and fulfilling careers). Of course, I was a national park ranger, and we got paid to live year 'round in some rather spectacular settings that most people, if they're lucky, might spend a few days or a week in, so there were compensations. There's something special about having the Grand Canyon in your back yard. That said, I don't know anyone who chose my career path to get rich. It was much more a way of life than a way to make a living.

Yeah, I think once you get to high school age, it does a real number on development for kids to move (4 of his kids are that age now), essentially there comes a time where routine gives of more self-security, which tends to coincide with puberty. Just saying, were I in that position, I would completely understand not wanting to uproot your children in short order every 2-3 years.